Not your ordinary Sunday ride

Equestrians saddle up to compete in Abbeville

March 26, 2007

By CHRIS TRAINOR
Index-Journal staff writer

When most people speak of taking a Sunday ride, they are referring to a scenic drive across the countryside in a car.
However, a completely different type of ride was in order for a group of collegiate athletes Sunday in Abbeville.
Cricket Hollow Stables in Abbeville and the Lander University equestrian team played host to the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association Zone 5 Region 2 Hunter Seat Championships.
A number of teams competed in the event. Riders from Lander, Anderson University, Berry College, Clemson University, Judson College, the University of Georgia and the University of South Carolina participated.
Harriet Morton coaches Lander’s team and played a large role in organizing the event.
“I thought the show today went really well,” Morton said. “It was well organized and the horses were good.”
Morton said the Zone 5 championships were last held at the Abbeville stables about five years ago.
One unique aspect about IHSA shows such as Sunday’s is the fact that riders do not ride their own horses. There is a stable of horses chosen for the show, and riders draw before the show to see which animal they will ride.
Clemson’s Charlotte Powers, who took first place in two events, liked the course set-up.
“This is a good ring,” said Powers of the riding surface. “They picked a good course, one that really challenged the riders. I got two good horses, so I was happy about that.”
Riders from Lander fared well in the three events in which they rode. Caroline Beasley took first place in novice equitation and novice over fences.
The equitation is a show in which judges rate how riders look on the horse as the animal goes through different paces. The over-fences show is one in which riders guide the horse through a course as it leaps over barriers at different heights.
Beasley was all smiles after her first-place finish in novice equitation.
“I am very excited, because that means I get to move on to face winners from other regions, then hopefully on to nationals,” Beasley said.
The regional event Beasley referred to will be April 7 at Berry College. She said she would have to finish first or second in her classes at that event to move on to nationals.
Beasley said she knew she would fair well when she drew the horse she rode, “Chubby.” She said she has had success with Chubby in the past.
“I was a little nervous, because I hadn’t ridden him in a while,” Beasley said, smiling. “But he was a good boy. You can’t ask for a better ride than him.”
Lander’s Nicole Phelps placed second in the advanced walk/trot/canter class. Meanwhile, Greenwood native Sally Leo, now a student at Anderson, participated in the novice over fences.

Car lands in woods

Driver airlifted to Augusta

March 26, 2007

By R. SHAWN LEWIS
Index-Journal managing editor

A man was seriously injured late Saturday when his car left a secluded stretch of Briarwood Road and ended up on its driver’s side about 15 feet off the road — and roughly 10 feet below it in the woods.
The driver was airlifted by helicopter to the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta for treatment of a head injury, said Sloan Griffin, of the Promised Land Volunteer Fire Department. The driver was conscious and talking to emergency personnel.
Medical College of Georgia officials confirmed that, as of 3 p.m. Sunday, the driver — Greenwood’s Michael Jones — was at the facility receiving treatment for his injuries.
“We had to keep the vehicle stable while EMS personnel went inside it to get him out,” said Griffin, who is the department’s safety officer and public information officer. Promised Land received the call shortly after 11 p.m. Saturday.
Jones, who was alone in the car, was trapped in the green Ford sedan when rescue workers arrived. Emergency personnel were able to pry him out of the vehicle. After stabilizing him on a backboard, they carried him up a steep bank back to the road in a massive team effort.
Johnnie Morton, who lives next door to the wreck scene, was watching TV in the living room of his 2205 Briarwood Road home when he “heard it.”
“We ran out here,” Morton said. “I didn’t know what had happened. I knew somebody had wrecked. I heard tires squalling and then a big loud BOOM!”
State Highway Patrol investigators found skid marks leading to the vehicle that were several dozen feet long. They said Jones apparently ran off the left side of the road, then over-corrected and eventually ended up over the embankment.
The Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office also assisted at the scene.
The wreck in the isolated neighborhood drew a large crowd of curious onlookers.
“When the helicopter lands, everybody comes out,” Griffin said. “The helicopter brings excitement — and not always the good kind.”

Staff writer Chris Trainor contributed to this report.

No subject too hairy for this barbershop

Michael Vick, tattoos, tall tales ... nothing’s off-limits at Brad’s

March 26, 2007

By CHRIS TRAINOR
Index-Journal staff writer

Sometimes men just need a place to go to talk.
To talk in manly tones about manly things. Like sports. Or motorcycles. Or, well, women.
There is such a place in Ware Shoals, situated squarely in the middle of the small Southern town. It’s Brad’s Barber Shop.
The shop is open Wednesday through Saturday, and the forum where one can speak his mind is always open there. While the duo of barbers — owner Brad Calhoun and veteran barber Gabe Leverette — doles out every type of haircut imaginable, conversations shift seamlessly from one topic to another.
The scene invokes the 2002 movie “Barbershop,” only with a distinct Southern-fried flavor.
“Sports, politics, women, cars, you name it,” Leverette said. “There is no main topic of conversation here; we talk about all of it. And we’ll go from one to the other in a matter of a few words.”
One hot topic at the shop Friday was football, in particular Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick. The shop has a television perched high on a shelf at one endof the store, and the set seems perpetually tuned to ESPN.
Vick was arrested earlier this year under suspicion of concealing marijuana in a secret compartment of a water bottle as he went through an airport in Miami. Vick was never charged and has recently come out and said he uses the secret compartment to hide jewelry.
The guys at Brad’s weren’t buying it.
“Jewelry? What jewelry? I though they said the compartment had a green leafy substance in it,” Leverette offered.
Customer Robert Keller also scoffed at the report.
“Whoever went to all the trouble to try and put that case on Vick, they must have been a rookie,” Keller said. “You know they’ve probably paid him off and told him to go on.”
Keller is the type of customer who must be a requisite fixture of every barber shop in the country: middle-aged with a well-groomed haircut, informed, quick with a laugh and ready to comment on any conversation that suddenly springs forth.
And if Keller fits the mold of that type of barber-shop staple, then Honea Path’s D.C. Evans fits another: the shop clown.
As Friday afternoon began to turn to evening, the roar of motorcycles was heard rolling up outside the shop. The sounds were indicative of the Japanese import bikes that are popular with younger riders.
“Uh oh, here comes 50 and The Game,” Calhoun said, smiling as he was wrapping up another haircut.
Calhoun was referring to Evans and a friend, whom he likens to hip-hop stars 50 Cent and The Game. While Evans’ friend quickly roared off to pursue other interests, Evans waited for a spot in Calhoun’s chair and quickly denounced the nickname the barber christened him with.
“I’m not The Game; I’m the Birdman,” said Evans, grinning as he pulled up his sleeve to reveal a detailed, ornate tattoo of a bird on his right bicep.
As Evans would soon prove, tall tales are certainly part of the conversation at Brad’s.
“Let me tell you, one night I was getting with a woman, and she must have been about 33 years old,” said Evans, who is in his early 20s. “Before I knew it her husband came home. He said, ‘Boy, what are you doing with my woman? I should kill you! But ... but ... man, that’s a good-looking haircut you’ve got!’ That’s right, the haircut Brad gave me saved my life that night.”
With that, the barber shop exploded as everyone howled with laughter. Calhoun could do little except laugh himself.
“You ain’t right, boy,” he said to Evans as he stepped into a back room to grab a bag of clothes for someone who stopped by to get their dry cleaning.
The shop also serves as a pick-up and drop-off point for Cambridge Dry Cleaners.
Operating two businesses out of the same location, and with people coming and going and constantly firing out a barrage of broad-ranging chatter, Calhoun at times seems as much a traffic director as he does a barber. As such, the seasoned veteran knows when to keep things light and when to be serious.
“Ask Brad about that big box of condoms right there,” said Evans, attempting to make light and put Calhoun on the spot regarding the contraceptives the health department asked Calhoun to put in his shop.
Some patrons laughed at Evans’ prodding, but Calhoun’s face changed quickly from a smile to one of true sincerity. The barber paused in what he was doing.
“I want my brothers to stay alive and stay safe,” Calhoun said, straight-forwardly.
With that the laughter subsided and the other patrons in the shop quietly nodded and conceded the point to Calhoun.
It was a poignant moment of social commentary in an afternoon filled with a whirlwind of conversation that seemed to touch on every topic under the sun.
“Like I said, we discuss it all,” said Leverette, as he cleaned off his chair and pointed to a waiting customer. “Next!”

Obituaries

Mary Emma Burton

Mary Emma Burton, 80, of 113 N. Bethune St., widow of Wallace Burton, died Friday, March 23, 2007, at the Hospice House of the Piedmont.
Born in Greenwood County, she was the daughter of the late Johnny and Emma Thomas Ouzts. She was retired from Greenwood Mills. She was a member of Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church, where she was a former member of the Gospel Chorus and the Pastor’s Aide Society. She also gave her time as a foster parent.
Survivors include two daughters, Mary McCauley of the home and Peggy Moton of Greenwood; one sister, Carrie Lee Harrison of Greenwood; five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Services are 2 p.m. Wednesday, March 28, 2007, at Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church, conducted by the Rev. Otis Cunningham. The body will be placed in the church at 1 p.m. Burial is in the church cemetery.
The family will receive friends at the home of a granddaughter, Sandra Smith, 115 Kenilworth Drive (Canterbury Subdivision) on Tuesday evening from 6-8. Online condolences may be sent to robson@nctv.com.
Robinson & Son Mortuary Inc. is in charge of arrangements.

Linda Joyce Chambers

FORT MOHAVE, Ariz. — Linda Joyce Chambers, 64, entered into rest Wednesday, March 21, 2007, at Heartland Hospice.
Mrs. Chambers is survived by her husband, Frank R. Chambers of Fort Mohave, Ariz.; children, Dr. Eric Boyd and wife Anna of Silver Spring, Md. and Tracy Sabine and husband Eric of Charlotte, N.C.; grandchildren, Sophia Boyd, Maggie Boyd, both of Silver Spring Md., and Jack (Boy) Sabine of Charlotte, N.C.; brother, William Christian Jr. of Greenwood, S.C.; niece, Ginger Christian of Greenwood, S.C.
Mrs. Chambers was a native of Greenwood, S.C. She was a member of Hephzibah United Methodist Church and Ladies Golf Association of Desert Lake Golf Course. Mrs. Chambers was preceded in death by her parents, William and Louise Christian.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Wednesday, March 28, 2007 at Hephzibah United Methodist Church with Pastor Gary E. McWhorter officiating.
In lieu of flowers, the family request donations be made to Hephzibah United Methodist Church, Building Fund in Linda’s name, P.O. Box 65, Hephzibah, Ga. 30815.
Poteet Funeral Homes, South Chapel, 3465 Peach Orchard Road, Augusta, Ga. is in charge.

Louise Colvert

Louise Allen Colvert, 98, widow of Samuel Little Colvert Jr., former resident of 506 Brooklane, died Sunday, March 25, 2007.
A native of Spartanburg, she was born Feb. 8, 1909, in Enoree, S.C., a daughter of the late Dr. Joseph W. and Cecelia Menke Allen. She was the last living member of her family.
Mrs. Colvert was a graduate of Winthrop University and taught second grade until retirement with Greenwood School District 50. A member of Main Street United Methodist Church, Mrs. Colvert was also an honorary member and former past president of the Tulip Garden Club, the Entres Nous Book Club, As You Like It Club and former member of the Supper Club.
Surviving is her daughter and son-in-law, Cecelia C. and Henry L. Reynolds of Greenwood; three granddaughters, Menke and her husband, Bubba Harvin, Anna Graham and her husband, Chas Fox, and Bryte Reynolds Corbett, all of Greenwood and four great-grandchildren, Sophie Harvin, Reynolds and Blu Fox and Bryte Daniel Corbett.
Graveside services will be 11 a.m Tuesday at Edgewood Cemetery with the Reverend Charles Horne officiating.
Honorary pallbearers will be nephews and the staff at the Bayberry Retirement Inn, where she has made her home for the past four years. The family will receive friends following the service.
The family is at the home of her daughter and son in-law, Cecelia and Henry, 837 Sunset Drive, Greenwood.
Memorials may be made to Main Street United Methodist Church building fund, 211 North Main Street, Greenwood, SC 29646, Hospice Care of the Piedmont, 408 West Alexander Avenue, Greenwood, SC 29646 or to the Greenwood Humane Society, PO Box 242, Greenwood SC 29648.
Harley Funeral Home and Crematory is in charge of arrangements.
Online condolences may be sent to the Colvert family by visiting www.harleyfuneralhome.com.

Richard Ewart

Richard Howard Ewart, 53, of 120 Happy Tom Lane, husband of Anita Ewart, died Saturday, March 24, 2007, from injuries received in a motorcycle accident.
The family is at the home.
Services will be announced by Harley Funeral Home and Crematory.

Nita Berry Lee

SPARTANBURG — Nita Berry Lee, 91, of Spartanburg, died Saturday, March 24, 2007, at White Oak Estates. A native of Pacolet, she was a daughter of the late Hebra Wylie and Ollie Kirby Berry and the widow of the Rev. Michael Boyd Lee. She was a homemaker and a member of Bethel United Methodist Church.
Survivors include three daughters and sons-in-law, Mary Frances and Bill Cantrell of Spartanburg, Sidney and Jerry Williams of Gray Court, S.C. and Harriett and John Rucker of Newberry, S.C.; four sons, Michael B. Lee III of Laurens, S.C., Lewis B. Lee and his wife, Nancy, of Newberry, C. Mason Lee and his wife, Carol, of Spartanburg, and Dr. Frank C. Lee of Charleston, S.C.; a brother, Milan B. Berry of Enoree, S.C. and a number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by one sister and five brothers.
Visitation will be from 10-10:45 a.m., Tuesday, March 27, 2007, at Bogansville United Methodist Church. Funeral services will follow at 11 a.m. at the church, conducted by the Rev. Gary Peterson, the Rev. David E. Nichols, the Rev. Dr. James E. Hunter III and the Rev. Dr. John M. Stapleton. Burial will be in the church cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Bogansville United Methodist Church Cemetery Fund, 4052 Buffalo -West Springs Road, Jonesville, SC 29353
An online guest register is available at www.floydmortuary.com.
Floyd’s Greenlawn Chapel

John Carl Williams

John Carl Williams, 64, of 628 Gage St., Greenwood, husband of Bobbie F. Williams, died March 23, 2007, at Hospice House.
Born in Mt. Carmel, SC, Aug. 3, 1942, he was a son of the late John Carl Williams Sr. and Rose Oliver Williams. He was owner and operator of Booker Street Grocery, a graduate of Brewer Class of 1963, and attended Lander College and the University of Florida. He was a member of Springfield Missionary Baptist Church and a veteran of the Vietnam War.
Surviving is his wife of the home; a son, John Carl Williams III of Atlanta, GA; three daughters, Erika Lukie of Greenwood, Mitzi D. Williams of Atlanta, GA, and Brittany N. Williams of Columbia, SC; two sisters, Georgia Williams Hawkins of Trenton, NJ, and LTC Henrietta Williams Brown of Fort Carson, CO; three grandchildren; and a host of other friends and relatives.
Funeral services will be held Tuesday at 2 p.m. at Springfield Missionary Baptist Church, with the Rev. Andy Young officiating. Burial will be in the church cemetery.
Pallbearers and flower bearers will be friends of the family.
The body will be placed in the church at 1 p.m.
The family is at the home.
Percival-Tompkins Funeral Home is assisting the Williams family.

Opinion

Internet predators face punishment for actions

March 26, 2007

Part Two
There’s been a disturbing increase in the number of child sexual abuse cases in South Carolina in recent years. As noted before, this heinous crime has become a national problem. Almost every day another abuse case comes to light, and that kind of outrageousness is, or should be, unacceptable to every law-abiding citizen in the Palmetto State.
Then there are the kidnappings and murders of children to add to the tragic sickness that has befallen many child molesters. This is a telling indictment of all of society, really. It tells us that a so-called civilized society has all but fallen down on its inherent obligation to protect our most valuable resources: our children.

ROUTINE CHILD ABUSE HAS also gotten worse as our world seems to spiral further downward into moral and religious chaos. It might be in Delaware, or Wisconsin or California. It might be in a state full of conservative Republicans or in one where liberal Democrats hold sway.
When a child is murdered it shocks our senses. It should, as should cases where children are abused in frightful and disgusting ways. We cannot ever reach a point where we, as a society, take such vile offenses for granted and acceptable in any sense of the imagination.
It seems, though, that we are taking a stand, finally. A good example is the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force begun by South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster. Law enforcement agencies from all around have joined the effort, with more likely to come, and hardly a day goes by when at least one of them doesn’t arrest someone for soliciting sex from a minor through the Internet. While posing on the ‘net as a minor, agents are able to track and arrest violators.

CONSIDERING HOW OFTEN IT happens, experience would seem to tell us that eventually we’ll win the battle. The stupidity of Internet predators would appear to confirm that. Arrests and conditions of the arrests are publicized, yet predators continue to act and get caught.
As of March 19, there have been 66 arrests since the Internet Predator law was passed in 2004. That’s 66 fewer people for parents and law enforcement to worry about.
Child abuse, Internet sexual solicitation and other offenses seem to have no end. With the obvious success of the ICAC Task Force, though, there’s room for optimism, and that kind of good news is always welcome.